11:30 a.m.: Downtown Fort Pierce was quiet and without many shoppers in the late morning of Black Friday.

Whimsy, the unique chic boutique on North Second Street in Edgartown, didn't have any customers inside it's historic building at 11 a.m. despite deals offered only Friday and the next day, Small Business Saturday.

All jewelry was 50 percent off, said employee Brittany Doyle. Basic tops and layering pieces were buy two, get one free. The store also offered 30 percent off any regular priced clothing item.

8:30 a.m.: The Home Depot on Gatlin Boulevard in Port St. Lucie was busy at 8 a.m. Black Friday since it was one of the stores that didn't open on Thanksgiving.

Shelves of poinsettias, a Black Friday favorite among shoppers since they're only 99 cents each, were still available in the morning but were going fast. The store opened at 5 a.m.

Each customer could buy up to 12 poinsettias, and most people filled their orange shopping carts to the maximum. It was the busiest part of the store.

Employees and customers noted the poinsettias are bigger this year than they used to be one or two years ago.

7:45 a.m.: Only a handful of people stood outside Sports Authority in Tradition before the store reopened at 6 a.m. despite a stack of available gift cards to spend on Black Friday.

And one of those cards was worth $500.

Store manager Tim Doody said not nearly as many people showed up on Friday as they did when the store first opened at 6 p.m. Thursday. It then closed at midnight before it reopened Black Friday.

He said the first three hours were the busiest.

"It was just crazy," Doody said.

The first 80 people in line for each opening would get a gift card that could have been worth anywhere from $10 to $500.

Doody was still giving away gift cards an hour after the store reopened Friday.

He told customers about the man who was buying a pair of insoles for his shoes, remembered the gift card in his pocket and scratched it off to find he had $500 more to spend.

The man and his wife returned to shopping and came back with fishing poles, bicycles, clothes and shoes.

"They were so excited," Doody said.

Employees said they were operating with a skeleton crew on Thanksgiving when the store was packed, but customers should get great customer service with more employees working than people shopping Friday morning.

6:25 a.m.: Manager at Sports Authority in Tradition said he still has a stack of gift cards available at front doors. The first 80 people will get gift cards ranging from $10 to $500.

She waits until after the opening rush to find great deals and doesn't look for anything specific, especially not big electronics like TVs.

Prescott has shopped on Black Friday since age 12 with her mom, who was with her just before 5 a.m. at Old Navy in Tradition on Friday.

Prescott started her Black Friday shopping this year at Vero Beach Outlets right after Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday and said she wanted to walk off the turkey.

"They had great deals," Prescott said.

Most Tradition stores were quiet between 3 and 6 a.m. as some closed and reopened while others stayed open but had only a light trickle of customers.

Employees at Old Navy and the nearby McDonald's on Gatlin Boulevard said they were busy earlier on Black Friday, but the amount of customers slowed into the wee hours of the morning. They both expected another wave of people beginning at 6 a.m.

4 a.m.: Light rain starting to fall east of Tradition.

2:15 a.m.: Store traffic slowed down considerably after midnight, but the XBox One proved to be an item some customers were willing to wait for.

GameStop in Tradition was packed around 1 a.m. as customers hoped to get one of the lucrative game consoles.

"This is probably it," Port St. Lucie resident Wecker Vallejo said. "I'm tired." Vallejo said he went Black Friday shopping for the first time in four years to snag an XBox One. He started off at WalMart at 6 p.m. to shop for things for his home. "This is something to do after dinner," he said. "What are you going to do? Lay in bed? Come on, you've got to do something."

2:05 a.m.: There's a slight drizzle in Fort Pierce so be careful on the roads if you are still out.

12:45 a.m.: At this time, even Target is pretty easy to get through now.

12:30 a.m.: Pretty crowded inside GameStop in Tradition.

Midnight: Port St. Lucie resident Amanda Rodrigues decided to brave Black Friday shopping for the first time this year.

She said the day went fine "as long as you're not going to a major store. Something like (Beall's), it's not bad. There's not a lot of people, but go to Target and you're waiting five hours in line."

Crowds thinned dramatically at Walmart as early shoppers took home their hauls. Most aisles were clear by 11:30 p.m.

11:15 p.m.: @TCPalmEPfahler reported that the WalMart in western Port St. Lucie had parking available and wondered whether the early opening would mean an early taper. Most aisles are reported to be empty.

10:30 p.m.: It's been a smooth night at Old Navy in Port St. Lucie, said a couple of employees. There's a decent line there now, but not like there was at WalMart and Target.

10 p.m.: Not everyone has been pleased by the push to move Black Friday into Thanksgiving. "Thanksgiving should be sacred," said Port St. Lucie resident Sid Wetherall. He started shopping at WalMart at 6 p.m. before heading to Sports Authority as part of his annual Black Friday shopping.

Port St. Lucie resident Ryan Whiting, meanwhile, had one product in mind. Whiting came to GameStop to get an XBox One. "This is the second time I've gone (Black Friday shopping)," he said.

9:45 p.m.: About 20 people are at the GameStop in St. Lucie County waiting to pay $500 for an XBox One.

9:40 p.m.: Traffic pretty clear in Port St. Lucie.

9 p.m.: Getting into Target is easy an hour after the store open, but be patient: checkout lines are rather long.

8:45 p.m.: An estimated 2,000 people stood in line at the Target in Port St. Lucie.

8:30 p.m.: Getting three 50-inch flatscreen televisions proved to be a family affair for the first three in line at Target in Tradition.

Siblings Carlos and Laura Sanchez joined their cousin Andre Mora at 11 a.m. for the 8 p.m. open.

Carlos Sanchez said their grandmother waited for them before they could get there.

"I didn't like how they opened at 8 p.m. though," he said. "I needed to eat Thanksgiving dinner."

After the nine-hour wait, he emerged 10 minutes later with TV in cart preparing to go out for more.

Port St. Lucie resident Michael Coggins stood watching as Sanchez and more than 500 other people poured through the store. He planned to come for 30 minutes to pick up a few things.

"I'm just kind of surprised at all the people," he said.

7:45 p.m. Target in Tradition is handing out cards to those waiting in line to buy the 50" TV on sale. An estimated 500 people are waiting in line. The store opens at 8 p.m.

6:45 p.m.: Thanksgiving stuffing did not stop a hoard of people from filling up WalMart in Fort Pierce. Lines snaked through the store as hungry shoppers searched for deals on electronics, toys and kitchen appliances. Miami resident Angela Odom came up to spend Thanksgiving with family. She will leave with shopping carts full of electronics and kitchen appliances.